Dancing with the Ferryman -Synopsis

Jo McMorrow panics when she discovers her fiancé David is a gambling addict and saddled with huge debts, and to make matters worse he has made plans for the equity she has built up in her London property, which don’t involve buying their dream home together. Jo conceals the news of her pregnancy from David and disappears up to Shetland in the hope of starting a new life without him.

Jo does not confront David about his gambling or what he planned to do with her money until a week after her escape, as she is afraid he would convince her that nothing was wrong. When she does contact him she finds out more shocking news and evidence of his deception. He is married with two children and has gone back to his wife and does not want any contact with Jo, although he does not yet know about the baby.

Jo is stunned by the latest revelation and this combined with the acute loneliness she feels in her new environment makes her wonder whether she has made the right choice. However, she sets about creating a new life for herself in Shetland, making friends with neighbours and other expectant mothers.

Through a series of misfortunes and accidents she becomes friendly with Magnus, a divorced man who works on the inter-isle ferry. At first she believes this is purely a platonic relationship, as she cannot comprehend how anyone would find her attractive during her pregnancy. In the beginning she is not attracted to him because of how different he appears to men she has known in London, both in terms of how he dresses and how he acts. At the same Magnus does not see Jo as a potential partner because he believes that the father of her child will try to get back together with her. However, circumstances conspire to bring them together, and after a while it becomes difficult to hide the attraction they have for each other.

This story explores cultural and language differences between Shetlanders and incomers; the transition from life in a big city to a tiny close-knit community on a remote island; the social taboos of starting a new relationship whilst pregnant; and how people make assumptions about each other through a failure to communicate properly. The theme of the novel is gambling, as although Jo takes action to get away from a gambling addict she is in fact taking the biggest gamble of her life by moving away from everything that is familiar and safe.

It is a contemporary romantic novel.